The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1887-02-03
PiCKETT'S CHARGE.

IObul VI lChGLt We QuOlc as
follows: AT exactly one o'clock by
my watch the two sIgnal-guns were
| heard in quick succession. In another
minute every gun was ut work. The
enemy were not slow in coming back
at Us, and the grand roar of nearly the
whole artillery of both armies burst in
on the silence, almost as suddenly as
the full notes OF an organ could fill
church.
The artillery of Ewell's corps, how
over, took only small part, / be-
| lieye, in this, as they were too far away
around the town. Some of them might
have done good service from positions
| between Hill and Ewell, eniilading the
batteries lighting Us. The opportunity
to do that was the single advantage, in
our having the exterior line to COM
pensate tor all its disadvantages But
our line was so far extended that all of
1t was not well studied, and the officers
OF each corps had no opportunity to eX-
anime each others ground TOR chances
OF cooperative work.
The enemy's position seemed tc
have broken out with guns everywhere,
and from Round Top TO Cemetery Hill
was blazing like Volcano. The air
seemed full of missiles from every
direction. The severity of the fire may
be illustrated by the casualties iu my
own battalion under Major Huger.
Before the cannonade opened had
made up my mind to give Pickett the
| order TO advance within fifteen or
twenty minutes after it began. But
when | looked at the full development
of the enemy's batteries, and knew that
/ his infantry was generally protected
from our fire by stone walls and swells
of the ground, | could not bring myself
to give the word. 1t seemed madness
to launch infantry into that fire, with
nearly three-quarters of mile to 60 in
J the midday July sun. let the fifteen
minutes pass, and twenty, and twenty
! five, hoping vainly for something to
! turn up. Then l wrote to Pickett: IF
You are coming at all you must come at
once, or cannot give you proper sup
port; but the enemy's fire has not slack
ened at all; at least eighteen guns are
! still firing from the cemetery itself
Five minutes after sending that mes
sage, the eneny's fire suddenly began
to slacken, and the guns in the cemetery
| limbered up and vacated the position.
I'VE Confederates often did such
things as that to save our ammunition
"
before seen the Federals Withdraw their
guns simply to save them up for the in
1antry fight So | said, If he does not
run fresh batteries in there in five
minutes. this is our fight l looked
anxiously with my glass. and the five
minutes passed without sign of life on
the deserted position, still swept by our
fire, and Uttered with dead men and
horses and fragments of disabled car
riages. Then L wrote Pickett, urgent
ly: For Gods sake, come quick. The
eighteen guns are gone; come quick, or
my ammunition won't let me support
you properly
Il afterwards heard from others what
took place with my first note to Pickett.
pickett took it to Longstreet, Long
street read it, and said nothing. Pick
EFT said, General, shall l advance?'
Longstreet, knowing it had to be, but
unwilling to give the word, turned his
face away. Pickett saluted and said, Il
am going to move forward. sir, gal
loped off to his division and Immediate
ly put it in motion.
''Longstreet, leaving his staff, came
out alone to where | was. 1t was then
about lao p, III. l explained the situa-
ton. feeling then more hopeful, but
| afraid our artillery ammunition might
| not hold out for all we would want.
Longstreet said, Stop Pickett immed-
lately and replenish your ammunition
1 explained that it would take too long,
and the enemy would recover from the
effect our fire was then having, and we
had. moreover, very little TO replenish
with. Longstreet Said. Il don't want to
make this attack. l would stop it now
but that General Lee ordered it and ex-
poets it to 90 on. | don't see how it
can succeed.
Il listened but did not dare offer q
word. The battle was lost if we stop
ped. Ammunition was far too low to
try anything else. for we had been
fighting three days. There was a
chance. and it was not my part to inter-
fere. While Longstreet was still speak
ing, Picketts division swept out of the
wood and showed the full length of its
gray ranks and shining bayonets. as
grand sight as ever man looked on.
Joining it on the left, Pettigrew stretch
ed farther than | could see. General
Dick Garnett, just out of the sick am
bulance. and buttoned up in an old
blue overcoat, riding at the head of his
brigade, passed US and saluted Long
street Garnett was Il warm personal
friend, and we had not met before for
months. We had served on the plains
| together before the war. | rode with
him short distance, and then we wish
ed each other luck and a goodbye
which was our last.
''Then | rode down the line of guns,
selecting such as had enough ammuni-
ton, to follow Pickett's advance, and
starting them after him as fast as pos
Sible. got, think. fifteen or eighteen
in all in little while, and went with
them. Meanwhile, the infantry had no
sooner debouched on the plain than all
the enemy's line. which had been near
ly silent, broke out again with all its
batteries. The eighteen guns were
back in the cemetery, and storm of
shell began bursting over and among
our infantry. All of our guns, silent as
the infantry passed between them, re-
opened when the lines had got couple
of hundred yards away, but the enemy's
artillery let US alone and fired only at
the infantry No one could have look
ed at that advance without feeling proud
of it.
'But as our supporting guns ad-
vanced. we passed many poor mangled
victims left IN its trampled wake. A ter
rifle infantry fire was now opened upon
Pickett, and Il considerable force of the
enemy moved out to attack the right
flank of his line. We halted, unlimber-
ed, and opened fire upon it Pickett's
men never halted. but opened fire at
close range, swarmed over the fences
and among the enemy's guns, were
swallowed up in smOke-and that was
the last of them The conflict hardly
seemed to last five minutes before they
Were melted away, and only disorgan-
lied stragglers were coming back pur-
sued by moderate fire. just then.
Wilcox's brigade passed by us, moving
TO Pickett's support. There was no
longer anything to support, and with
the keenest pity at the useless waste OF
life | saw them advance. The men, as
they passed us. looked bewildered. as
If they wondered what they were ex-
pected to do. or why they were there
They were soon, however. halted and
moved back. :"